Before the next journey, they made one promise.
No secrets.
No sacrifices alone.
No running.
Lyra held their hands.
"Together."
Kael:
"Always."
Rylan:
"Obviously."
The stranger:
"Until the end."
Power flared softly around them.
A bond beyond battle.
Lyra's power reacted to the promise.
Like fate approved.
The city offered Lyra leadership.
She refused.
"I don't want to rule."
Kael asked why.
She answered:
"I want to protect. Not control."
Rylan smiled.
"Good. Leaders get paperwork."
Even the stranger almost smiled.
Instead she became something else.
A guardian.
A legend in motion.
Stories about her were already spreading beyond the city.